Fall - Waseca County Historical Society

History Notes is a publication of the Waseca County
Historical Society ©2006 , P. O. Box 314,
Waseca, MN 56093, (507) 835-7700
Check out our searchable website:
www.historical.waseca.mn.us
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including photographs. You can join online using your credit
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information.
WCHS Board of Directors:
Don Wynnemer, President
Dennis Kuefner, Vice-President
Rod Searle, Secretary
Dan Swenson, Treasurer
Henry Lewer
Rev. Charles Espe
Jean Lundquist
Jim King
Gwen Buschow
Don Zwach
Jim Tippy
Jerry Rutledge
Al Ruhland, County Commissioner
Al Rose, City Council
Staff:
Margaret Sinn, Director
director@historical.waseca.mn.us
Joan Mooney, Programs
program@historical.waseca.mn.us
Sheila Morris, Photo Archives
photo@historical.waseca.mn.us
Pauline Fenelon, Artifacts/Library
collection@historical.waseca.mn.us
Vanessa Zimprich, Artifacts
artifact@historical.waseca.mn.us
Teri Pribble, Bookkeeping
Museum Hours:
Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Bailey-Lewer Research Center Hours:
Tuesday-Friday, 9 a.m.-12 & 1-5 p.m.
or by appointment
MEMORIALS & CONTRIBUTIONS
Tax-deductible contributions to benefit the
The Smithsonian Museum On Main Street traveling exhibit Key Ingredients:
America By Food, comes to WCHS in December. In preparation
for the show we have been collecting information about food related
businesses in our area. The following article will be included in part in
our local exhibit opening prior to the arrival of Key Ingredients on
December 2nd and 3rd. The following Birds Eye employees contributed
to the story.
Burt Anderson: Warehouse and traffic manager
John Schall: Senior Supervisor 3rd shift
Leo Proechel: Head mechanic
John Schiefelbein: Field Dept., Freezer, Quality Control
Dick Palm: Production Superintendent 1954-1989
Cletus Wendinger: Quality Control, 34 years
Ken Earle: Field Department Manager
The History of the Waseca
Canning Company
1930s
What is now Birds Eye Foods began in 1929 in Waseca as the
Waseca Canning Company. Officers of the Fairmont Canning
Company came to Waseca in February of that year offering to
build a $200,000 canning company, if the community would
invest $150,000. The offer was
unanimously accepted. Committees
were organized and
the sale of stocks and bonds
began immediately. In less
than two weeks the machinery
had been ordered and
plans for building the factory
were underway. Meetings
were held by company representatives
to contract area farmers for growing corn. The farmers
that signed up for about 250 acres were: Dahle Brothers, Roy
Jewison, George J. Wetzstein, Erick Mann, George O’Neil,
Ralph Reineke, J.C. Johnson, Ed Fretham, George Taft, A.C.
Reineke, W.L. Draheim, James Norton, Delatus Dunn, William
A. Remund, T.J. Tobin, Hannah Hawkes, Hiram Powell, James
Iverson, Owen Brisbane and R. Erwin.
Four different varieties of sweet corn were grown here, two
white and two yellow. The price paid to farmers was from $11 to
$13 per ton delivered to the plant. The corn was harvested by
hand using one man per acre per day. Saturday, July 6 was the
selected date for harvesting 587 1/2 acres of peas. Machines to
vine peas were erected on seven locations around Waseca. The
Jack Cahill farm, Janesville Twp., the Art Byron farm in Sec.28,
St. Mary Twp., the James Norton farm in west St.Mary Twp.,
the L.J. Priebe farm, one mile south of Waseca, the Martin Le-
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On May 19, 1943 the Waseca J
page article announced the canning
terson’s anticipation of a serious lab
canning season. For the first time a
permitting 16-year old girls and boy
On June 16 the Waseca Journa
ernment authorized the Farm Security
Administration to transport 675
Jamaican laborers from the U.S.
Recruitment Camp in New Orleans
to Minnesota. The laborers were to
be assigned to LeSueur, Fairmont
and Blue Earth, as well as Waseca.
The June 23, 1943 edition of th
Waseca Journal stated the labor
situation was “critical”. The paper m
housewives of the city to offer their
duty to their country. “The vast foo
abundance must be preserved. It mu
who are serving on the far flung bat
Housewives, business and professio
their service even if they can work o
day. Those few hours may be enoug
rest that will permit him returning to
The Jamaicans
On June 26, 1943, 123 Jamaicans ar
came by special train from Chicago
taken to their living quarters on the
south of Waseca. The Jamaican labo
able-bodied men from 20-48 years o
they were here as representatives of
try. They were to assist American fa
win a war that had crippled their ow
most of Jamaica’s shipping facilitie
Articles ran in local papers brie
expected from the citizens, as well a
from the Jamaicans or Nationals as
Under government contract the